Those are both oil issues, which actually helps nat gas commodity pricing (long story on why that's the case, but I'll save you all the boredom of my industry's dynamics) which is prevalent in this area.

Cheap vinyl flooring is still prevalent, but the vinyl plank option doesn't have to look and feel cheap anymore.  

Why is this practice so prevalent?

The victim profile is changing, however; as predatory lending practices become more vicious, sophisticated, and prevalent, young, white prospective homeowners are as at risk as populations that historically may have been more vulnerable to them.Predatory lending in the context of home buying is comprised of a plethora of lending practicing and arrangements, including:Kickbacks to mortgage brokers (Yield Spread Premiums, where a broker can get a loan at a lower interest rate, but tells the borrowers only about the higher rate loan so that the broker will receive a kickback from the lender);A lender’s arrangements for payments that are higher than the borrower can afford;Falsifying loan applications (i.e., a lender may state on a loan application that a prospective borrower’s income is greater than it really is in order to facilitate approval of the loan);Adding insincere co-signers (lender adds a fake cosigner for loan approval);Making loans to mentally incapacitated homeowners;Forging signatures (lender forges a borrower’s signature on an early disclosure);Paying off lower income or interest mortgages;Loans in excess of 100% loan to value (LTV);Bait and switch tactics, such as substantially changing loan terms at closing;High annual interest rates;High points or padded closing costs;High loan origination fees;Balloon payments;Negative amortization (where principal balance increases rather than decreases);Padded appraisal costs (inflated home values in appraisal);Padded recording fees;Bogus fees (e.g., HUD will state that the broker has a fee for underwriting fee, when in fact brokers have no underwriting fee);Itemizing duplicate services and charging separately for them;Misinforming the prospective homebuyer that credit insurance is required and/or failing to disclose to the buyer that they are earning a commission on the insurance;Mandatory arbitration clauses;Falsely identifying loans as lines of credit or open ended mortgages;Forced placed homeowners insurance (lender falsely claims that homeowner does not have insurance and then gets an undisclosed commission for selling it to them);Repeated refinancing (flipping);Daily interest when payments are late;Excessive prepayment penalties;Foreclosure abuses; andHome improvement scams.A range of state and federal law of laws are available to help attorneys address dismantle the harm wrought by predatory lending practices.

Here MH are prevalent and most rural zonings/localities allow a SW and permits are around $250 or so. 

Realtors are negotiating shortsales, listing REOs and finding a preforeclosure lacks the value it had before because of the prevalence of post-foreclosures.

Property managers hate the lower end rentals, so even if you use them as a buffer you will be impacted by the revolving door and drama prevalent in the lower income neighborhoods.

Given the prevalence of tactics such as renting and letting friends and family live there, drugs dealings, and government regulations such as "Companion animals" I want to be able to get rid of problem tenants earlier than later.

This was super prevalent years ago, not sure how bad it may or may not be anymore.  

It’s a strategy that has become more prevalent the past few years.